//------------------------------//
// No Use Crying Over Spilled Tea 
// Story: Under The Light of Dusk 
// by applejackofalltrades 
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"Fluttershy, I'm back." Rainbow entered the room quietly, knowing that she had taken a lot longer than she had said she would, and she didn't want to risk scaring Fluttershy in case she had fallen asleep again. 

With a shrug toward Applejack, they both entered slowly. "I couldn't find Zecora, but I brought Applejack and some of her cider," she explained, making her way toward Fluttershy's bed where the mare seemed to lay. 

"Oh, okay," Fluttershy breathed. So she wasn't asleep, that was good. She sat up again, more carefully this time and smiled in Applejack's direction. "Hi, Applejack." 

"Mornin'," Applejack replied, tipping her hat forward. "Rainbow said you were sick so I brought some Apple family hot cider for ya." She looked around, although Rainbow Dash wasn't sure what she was looking for. "I reckon it's warm enough," she decided. Applejack took a spot next to Rainbow Dash and offered the mug to Fluttershy, who took it slowly. 

"It smells delicious," Fluttershy told her with a smile. She took a small sip, then after deciding it was indeed just warm enough to drink, she took a bigger gulp. "It certainly tastes delicious." 

Rainbow Dash could smell it in the air. "Maybe I should get sick too. I'd love to get my hooves on some of that apple cider," she joked, glancing over at Applejack who rolled her eyes. 

"Now now, the time'll come." She grinned as Fluttershy took another big sip, knowing that her cider was good. "We're looking to have plenty of apples this year, so maybe we'll start offering cider as well." 

Fluttershy choked on her drink, probably from drinking too quickly. "That's a great idea." She gave Applejack a reassuring glance. "I'm sure everypony will love it, the cider is amazing." 

"As if that's some kind of surprise," Rainbow muttered. Applejack must have heard her because she noticed her sit up straighter. "Oh, don't let me stroke your ego, AJ. You know the cider's good." 

"Eeyup," Applejack replied with a smirk. "I reckon I do know that. Although I also reckon I enjoy you complimenting our hard work. Anythin' else you wanna say?" 

Rainbow Dash glared at her, although she couldn't help but feel amused by the interaction. She decided to take the attention off of Applejack, much to the other pony's dismay. "Is the cider helping at all? Applejack said it's a cure-all, so if it's not I think I'm in the clear to teach her a lesson.” 

"I never said that—" 

Fluttershy laughed at her friends' interactions with each other. It must be amusing to see them annoying each other, Rainbow thought. Surprisingly, and to their delight, Fluttershy nodded. "Actually, my throat is feeling better already," she interrupted with an appreciative glance at Applejack. "Your cheek is looking a lot better, but... do either of you want to tell me why you're both covered in soil?" 

Applejack looked victoriously at Rainbow Dash who blew a chunk of rainbow mane out of her face. "Well, I was mindin' my business doing some work so we could provide food for today when Rainbow Dash..." She trailed off, shooting a quick sideways look at Rainbow Dash who frowned. "When Dash made a spectacular entrance and ended up covered in soil," she stated with a proud smile. "I reckon she thought she could get away with teasin' me, but clearly she ain't got away with it." 

Rainbow Dash huffed. "I only let you win the fight so you could feel good about yourself," she whined, folding her forelegs over herself. 

"Ever the humble pony, huh, Dash?" 

Fluttershy giggled, her spirits seemingly lifted. "Why is it that you two are the ones who fight the most," she pointed out with an amused smile on her face.

"Because she needs to know I'm the best," they both replied at the same time. "Stop copying me! Quit it! You're so annoying!" 

They pushed their snouts together, glaring defiantly in each other's eyes before separating with yet another unified grunt. Fluttershy shook her head softly, although the smile never faded from her face. "Oh, you girls are ridiculous." 

Rainbow Dash couldn't help but smile despite herself. She locked Applejack in a friendly headlock and pushed her hat down on her head, rubbing her hoof into the brim. "Yeah, you're right. This one can be pretty ridiculous at times," she commented as Applejack chortled at Rainbow. 

"Me? Ridiculous?" She shoved Rainbow off with a grin. "Yer the one acting like a filly," she pointed out as she fixed her hat and mane. 

"That's ridiculous," Rainbow retorted. She turned to Fluttershy. "Who's more ridiculous, Shy? Our entire friendship hangs in the balance," she spoke, raising both her eyebrows quickly. 

"Oh, well when you put it like that…" 

"See, she's about to say it's you, AJ. Fluttershy would never betray me."

"Um, I was about to say you're more ridiculous, actually." Fluttershy smiled apologetically. 

Rainbow Dash's jaw fell. "What?" 

Applejack exclaimed loudly. "Hah! Told ya!" 

"You're both pretty ridiculous though," Fluttershy explained, adjusting herself to a more comfortable sitting position on the edge of the cot to the right of Applejack and Rainbow who took a seat near the bottom end. "But since I've known Rainbow Dash since we were little, I have a lot more experience with how ridiculous she could be." 

Rainbow pouted, looking off to the side. "That's not true," she mumbled. 

Applejack mimicked Rainbow's previous headlock, except a lot more roughly given her natural strength. "See this is what ya get for always being such a goof," she teased. Rainbow Dash struggled to free herself from Applejack who continued to grin. "I guess today's my winning day," she gloated. 

Rainbow Dash ducked her head, staring intently at a bag of birdseed on the opposite wall. 

She wasn't really upset, obviously. There was nothing wrong with the teasing, as it was normal for her and Applejack. If anything, it was more fun when Fluttershy got involved, but something was still making her feel off. Not in a bad way, but not in a good way either. It was just strange. She figured it was probably the lack of sleep. 

"Feeling better, Shy?" She hadn't even noticed herself saying it until it came out. 

"Yes, thank you." Fluttershy looked over to Applejack. "The cider was amazing. Thanks so much for bringing me some, it helped a lot." 

"Sure thing, Fluttershy." 

And then there was silence. The three of them seemed to drift off into their own thoughts, and nopony made an attempt at a conversation. Instead, Rainbow Dash was made aware of all of her senses. First, there was sight. She could see telltale signs of Fluttershy's animal companions, even if none of them were around. She already noticed the birdseed, but she hadn't noticed the various food bowls in what she assumed to be the kitchen. There were little clumps of fur in random places on the floor, and Rainbow assumed that Fluttershy had been too sick to do any cleaning in the past day. She noted Angel's food bowl with a single carrot inside it, barely nibbled on. 

Then, there was her hearing. She could hear Applejack's steady breathing and Fluttershy's occasional sniffling. Mostly, she could hear muffled conversations from ponies outside, and the faint noises of the outside world waking up. She heard several greetings, polite conversations, and promises to see each other later. There were skittering noises from what seemed to be within the wall, and baby birds chirping for their mother. They had to be somewhere in the house, above them. 

Then there was the sense of smell. The smell of spiced apple cider still filled her lungs, and it made Rainbow Dash feel warm inside, even though she hadn't actually consumed any. There was a trace of another scent. Kibble, probably. It smelled like assorted animal food, and Rainbow Dash wasn't enough of an expert to guess which type. But there was something even more familiar that she could smell, and as faint as it was, she found herself clinging to it. The earthy smell of Sweet Apple Acres, mixed with what could be cinnamon and, of course, apples. It was the smell of normality, and of her friend, Applejack. 

Now, there wasn't a lot to go off of. The air smelled like too many things to be able to distinguish anything well, but Rainbow could never confuse the particular scent that Applejack seemed to give off. As weird as it might be, she could recognize all of her friends' specific smells. Fluttershy smelled like animals, but not in a bad way. Rarity smelled like clean fabric. Pinkie Pie smelled like sprinkles and sugar. Twilight smelled like long used books, whatever that meant. Sometimes, it didn't make sense, but Rainbow just knew. 

"I wonder what I smell like," she thought aloud. 

"Huh?" Fluttershy and Applejack both turned to her. They both seemed to have been zoning out as well. 

Rainbow Dash cursed herself for saying anything. "Nothing," she said quickly, not daring to make eye contact with either of them. 

"Sure don't sound like nothin’.” She couldn't see it, but Rainbow Dash could hear the grin on her face. 

"Is there something on your mind, Dash?" Fluttershy's soft voice almost surprised Rainbow. 

Instead, she shook her head. "No, not really," she denied. It wasn’t exactly a lie, there was nothing on her mind worth discussing, it was mostly just her taking in her friends’ existence and being extremely glad for it. At least that meant there was something to be glad about. 

Fluttershy got up from the bed and walked to the kitchen area. She looked around for a moment before turning back to them. “Um, I have some tea leaves that I was growing. Do you girls want some tea?”

Despite how close she was to Fluttershy, she wasn’t aware that she was gardening. It made sense in hindsight, she probably grew food for the animals, but it had never occurred to Rainbow as a possibility. Of course, ponies were allowed to grow whatever they wanted, but they usually didn’t have their own space to do it, and if they did, it was limited. Mostly, they’d grow food for special occasions, or in Fluttershy’s case, for when you want some tea. 

She wasn’t a huge fan of tea but figured that it was the only option she had, and she didn’t want to pass up Fluttershy’s hospitality. Even if she was supposed to be taking care of her. "Sure, thanks Shy." 

It seemed like Applejack didn't want to be a bother, however. "No thanks, Fluttershy. I don't want to use up your personal store," she rejected with a respectful shake of her head. 

"Oh don't be silly, Applejack," Fluttershy responded. "I insist. You did bring me cider, anyway. This is my way of paying you back." 

Rainbow looked between the two of them. Did Applejack really plan on denying that? By the look on her face, Rainbow could tell that Applejack was having the same idea run through her head. 

"There ain't no need for you to pay me back," Applejack insisted, although Rainbow Dash could tell that she was only saying it to be polite. 

"Of course there is," Fluttershy assured her. "It's only fair that I offer you something as well." She deepened her smile, and Rainbow knew her well enough to know that it was her way of daring Applejack to refuse again. 

Applejack appeared to know better and reluctantly nodded. "Alright, I'll have some tea. Thanks," she murmured in defeat. 

Rainbow found the entire exchange, although short, pretty funny. Applejack's stubborn personality with Fluttershy's need to be kind was a good clash at times.  The victorious smile on Fluttershy's face said it all, and despite her shy, withdrawn nature, she could be assertive when she had to be. Especially when somepony was rejecting her kindness. 

Rainbow Dash snickered at Applejack who refused to make eye contact but held an irritated frown. The frown disappeared, however, once Fluttershy turned around with a piece of bark used as a tray balancing on her wings. The tray held three steaming cups of tea, which even Rainbow had to admit smelled pretty good. For tea, anyway. 

Deciding that she didn't want to risk spilling the tea on Fluttershy's bed, Rainbow stood up and suggested moving to the central part of the room where there were a few chairs. There were no objections as the group moved to the chairs, sitting in a triangle so everypony could see each other. Fluttershy passed out the cups of tea, and Rainbow scolded herself for touching it with her wings rather than her hooves. 

Surprisingly, Fluttershy was the first to break the silence. "How have you girls been?" 

Rainbow instinctively looked at Applejack, assuming that she would have something more interesting to say, or maybe she had some good news. Instead, she shrugged indifferently. "I've been okay. There's lots of hard work to be done on the farm around this time o' year, so I've been keeping busy myself." She blew into her cup and attempted to take a sip. By her reaction, it appeared to still be too hot. "But the work's been worth it, I hope. It seems to me like we'll have a fine harvest this year; enough to feed everypony and still save for winter." 

Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash nodded, each of them bearing a smile. They knew firsthoof how hard it could be to not have enough food to go around, and hearing that now they might have more than enough was a welcome change. 

"That's great!" Rainbow shot her friend an awestruck smile, which Applejack had no problem returning. "I'm so glad that everything is looking up, especially when it's so easy for winters to be hard," she pointed out. She looked down at her reflection in the tea. It was tinged a warm orange and was steaming into her eyes. She blew into the cup, causing herself to ripple until she wasn't identifiable anymore. It was still too hot, and she burnt her tongue with a frown. 

"Careful, Dashie," Fluttershy warned, extending her wing to flap some air in the direction of Rainbow's cup. While it wouldn't have any real effect, she did appreciate it. "I hope this winter won't be too bad," Fluttershy hoped with a slight frown, pushing her mane away from her eyes as she looked to the floor. "I hate seeing the animals get sick." 

Even though Rainbow Dash herself couldn't tell when the animals were sick unless they were severely sick, she could see the worry on her Fluttershy's face every time there was a new sick animal, or one doing poorly due to the weather. Usually, the pegasi in charge of the weather eased into the winter to allow the animals time to prepare, but the last two winters have been nothing short of sudden and extremely difficult. There was no reason for it to be anything but, and yet, they hoped. 

Hope was a funny thing in Rainbow Dash's opinion. Sometimes, it felt stupid and foolish to hope because hope did nothing. Other times, hope was all she had. This was one of those times. She hoped that nothing would go extremely wrong during the winter. She hoped that the crops wouldn't frost before they were all harvested and stored properly. She hoped that the winter wouldn't come ahead of schedule, even if it would be a smart tactic for Twilight to employ. She hoped that it would be okay. 

It was silent for too long, and not in a nice way. Rainbow didn't want the mood to turn sour, so she did what she could do best. "I've been doing pretty fantastic. You know, I almost wanted to have some early morning fun, if you know what I mean." She smirked at nobody, forcing Fluttershy to blush and Applejack to roll her eyes. "But I was possessed by Applejack's spirit and felt like being productive for once." 

"Now that's a miracle," Applejack snorted. Fluttershy giggled, taking a sip of her drink. It seemed to work, bringing up a mildly inappropriate topic to two ponies who probably didn't want to hear it. At least they all found it amusing in some way, which was the intention. 

"The real miracle is that I didn't already have ponies lining up outside my door," Rainbow joked. Fluttershy's face seemed to redden even more, and she swore that Applejack blushed a little before covering her face with her hat. 

"Dashie, please," Fluttershy complained, now hiding in her mane. "We're practically like sisters, I don't want to hear about your…" 

"Sex life?" Rainbow filled in as she trailed off. Fluttershy squirmed in her seat, and Applejack stayed quiet, looking the other way as her hat covered her mouth. "Come on, we're all friends here. There's no need to be embarrassed, we're grown ponies." 

"I think Shy has a point, Dash." Applejack composed herself and placed her hat back on her head, although she still had a silly grin on her face. "Y'all are like kin, and I know for darn sure that I'd never discuss this sort of thing with Apple Bloom." 

Rainbow Dash snorted. "That's only 'cause Apple Bloom is like… seven."

"She's twelve," Applejack corrected. 

"Whatever. My point is, she's still a filly. Of course you wouldn't talk to her about stuff like this." Rainbow Dash exhaled in exasperation. Then, the corner of her mouth turned upward. "Hey, I don't think you've ever talked to us about your personal life," Rainbow pointed out. “If you know what I mean,” she implied as her eyebrows became worms on her face. Fluttershy's eyes flicked over to Applejack, and no matter how subtle she tried to be, Rainbow knew she was curious as she sipped her tea. 

Applejack decided to take a long drink of her tea, looking up at the ceiling. After what was too much time to actually be one sip, Applejack separated her cup from her mouth. "I don't got anythin' to say on the subject.” 

Rainbow wanted to accept that as the truth, she really did, but she wanted something interesting to talk about more. "Oh come on, AJ. I know you're busy a lot and whatever, but there's no way you've never done anything." She took the first sip of her tea and grimaced. She'd much prefer coffee. "Aren't you the embodiment of honesty?" 

That seemed to push Applejack a little further. Fluttershy seemed to agree as she raised her eyebrows and watched intently, sipping her tea slowly. Applejack hesitated, looking up to her left in thought. "Alright fine," she growled with a frown. "But ya gotta promise ya won't tell anypony." 

Now they were getting somewhere. "Okay, deal. I won't tell anybody," Rainbow promised. She certainly wouldn't break a friend's trust like that. 

Fluttershy nodded in agreement. "You have my word," she swore. 

Applejack shuffled her hooves nervously. What could possibly be making her that nervous? Rainbow Dash didn't want to push her, but she was extremely curious. Applejack opened her mouth, then closed it again, pressing her lips together in a near scowl. 

"I've never had sex," Applejack blurted out. 

Rainbow Dash almost laughed out loud, but not because her friend was still a virgin. "Seriously? That's what you were making us pledge secrecy on?" 

Fluttershy brought the mug just up under her snout, although it must have been empty because she didn't take a drink. "Me neither," she admitted with a blush. Although that didn't surprise Rainbow much, she never expected Fluttershy to be like that. 

Applejack huffed in annoyance. "Of course that ain't all what I was gonna say," she exclaimed quickly, raising her free hoof to rest her head on it. "Celestia knows what goes on through yer mind," she muttered. 

Despite being slightly offended, Rainbow bit back a sly remark. Instead, she opted to continue to press Applejack. "Okay, so what? Is your big secret that you've never even held hooves with a stallion?" 

Applejack bit her lip. "Somethin' like that." She took another sip of her tea, but this time it was much shorter. "I've never even been on a date with one before."

Fluttershy took another sip of her empty mug, raising her eyebrows again. Rainbow Dash didn't get what was so interesting though. Or why she was pretending to drink from a cup that was obviously empty. 

"So? I get it, you're busy." After a moment of deliberation, Rainbow decided to chug the rest of her tea. The sudden levels of heat down her throat made her eyes tear up. She blinked away the moisture before continuing. "When it all eases up, I'm sure you'll meet a stallion that you'll like and I know he'll like you back." 

Fluttershy sighed and shook her head slowly. "Honestly, Dashie, what am I going to do with you?" She got up and took Rainbow Dash's cup and her own back to the sink. Rainbow just cocked her head in confusion. 

Applejack rolled her eyes. "I don't think that's gonna happen, Dash." She shot a look at Fluttershy who shrugged in response. 

Rainbow Dash waved her hoof. "Don't say that. I know you will! You're pretty great, and I don't say that lightly." She nodded with encouragement at Applejack. "You're hard-working, honest, probably the strongest pony I've ever met, and I know there are ponies out there who think your stubbornness is charming." 

Applejack blinked for a moment but returned to a passive smile almost instantly. "I don't want to meet a stallion if ya catch my drift." She swirled the remaining tea around in her cup, not making eye contact with anypony. 

Rainbow Dash watched as Applejack frowned into her cup. She seemed nervous, almost. Why would she be nervous? Not everypony wanted to be in a relationship – she could attest to that – and she was sure that eventually, Applejack would get around to it if she wanted to. The stress of the current situation and the amount of work that she placed on her shoulders certainly didn't help. It was still strange for her to be nervous about it. 

Applejack was not a nervous pony. Sure, she never really seemed to mind much for stallions, so why would she be nervous about telling her friends that she didn’t... like... stallions...

Oh! Rainbow Dash raised her eyebrows and turned to look at Applejack with a surprised expression. Fluttershy took her time returning to her seat, but once she did, she smiled warmly at Applejack. How did I not pick up on this sooner? Rainbow chided herself for being so oblivious. 

"I think she catches your drift," Fluttershy whispered while maintaining a smile. She reached across to pat Applejack on the shoulder. "Thank you for telling us," she added. 

Rainbow Dash didn't say anything. Of course, she had nothing against it. It would be insanely hypocritical of her considering she's slept with a mare before, even if they were just friends. When it came down to it, however, Rainbow Dash had never even thought about dating. She found herself blushing at her stupidity. 

If Applejack noticed, she didn't show it. She downed the last of her tea with a neutral expression. "Thank y'all for being so understanding," she muttered. 

"Why do you sound underwhelmed?" Rainbow leaned forward in her seat, tipping forward enough to come dangerously close to tipping forward, but not enough to actually fall. 

Applejack shook her head. "No, I'm not underwhelmed. I'm actually quite relieved that y'all took it so well.”

"Of course we would," Fluttershy insisted quickly. 

Rainbow nodded. "Yeah, I mean why would I have anything against gay ponies?" 

"No, no. I know you two would be fine with it." She fidgeted, a moment of hesitation before she continued. "I'm more so talking about other ponies… and my family," she admitted with a frown. “Not that they’re judgemental or anythin’ like that, but I’m still scared to tell ‘em.”

Rainbow Dash copied her frown. It was a rational fear, she was sure, and she couldn't imagine how it must feel. "I'm really sorry, AJ." It was all she could say. She wasn't sure if a half-baked apology would help at all, but she didn't know what else to say to her. "I wish I could help, but I can't even begin to imagine what it must be like." 

Fluttershy offered a comforting smile, but Applejack didn't seem to notice. "I'm sure everypony would be okay with it. But you don't have to tell anypony if you don't want to," she pointed out. "You could always just keep it at us three, or you could tell our friends." Fluttershy scooted closer to Applejack and extended a wing over her back. "But either way, I'm proud of you." 

Applejack looked like she was about to cry, but she didn't. Rainbow Dash felt guilty for not being able to help and decided she might as well try. "I know it might not mean much, but you can always count on us," she assured her while scooting closer and mirroring Fluttershy's actions. "We'll always be here for you, no matter what." She bit her lip, not knowing what to say. 

It seemed Applejack noticed her long pause and let out an amused snort. "That does mean a lot, Dash, especially coming from somepony who's as out of tune with her own feelings as you are." She nudged Rainbow and then smiled at Fluttershy. "And thank you very much, Fluttershy. I think for now I'll leave it with you two, but it means a lot that you're so supportive." 

It would have been best to leave it at that, but Rainbow Dash was curious. "Why are you so worried anyway? I mean, I know that some ponies can be mean or judgy about that, but I'm sure your family would accept you." 

Applejack sighed, getting up and taking a few steps away from Fluttershy and Rainbow. "You just don't know 'em like I do." She looked at the potted plants growing along the back wall of Fluttershy's home, facing away from her friends. "The Apple clan has always been adamant on tradition. I'm afraid ponies like me aren't very traditional." 

Fluttershy exchanged a look with Rainbow Dash. "It might seem that way, but I'm sure that if you came out to them, they'd accept you," she assured her, not daring to move from her seat. "You're still an Apple, no matter what, right?" 

Rainbow Dash could barely see Applejack's face, but from what she saw, she could swear that there was a small smile on her face. "To the core."